Build a Garden in One Day—How to Get Started

If you've been longing to start a garden, but scared off by the time commitment (or the idea of digging up your lawn), never fear. In just a day you can build a raised-bed garden that's easy to maintain and perfect for those just starting to use their green thumbs—without the backache and hassle of removing sod.

Whether you want a raised garden for growing your own vegetables or for brightening up your landscape with a colorful collage of flowers, the first step is to choose a location that gets at least 6 hours of direct sunlight each day. In the U.S., that usually means a site that faces south. Because you're building a raised bed, you can choose a site on a sloping yard; just level it with a shovel first. But avoid a low spot in the lawn that doesn't have good drainage so your garden doesn't end up sitting in a giant mud puddle.

Choose Your Materials

I built my raised garden bed six years ago using 4 x 4–inch, 8-foot cedar timbers, which naturally resist decay. Mine has held up wonderfully. You can use redwood, too, which also resists rot.

If you're growing flowers, you can use pressure-treated lumber. But definitely don't do this for a vegetable garden, since the chemicals in the wood can potentially seep into the soil and end up in your food. You can also use stone or concrete blocks for a raised bed. That'll raise the price, but you'll get an elegant look.

Step 1: Build the Raised Bed

Start by mowing the site with the lowest setting to get grass as short as possible (this makes killing the grass easier). Then build the raised bed. If you're using 4 x 4–inch timbers like I did, use 6-inch nails to assemble the wooden box. Intertwine the corners by having the timbers from one course overlap the joints from the previous, as seen in the photo. If you're using masonry products, follow the manufacturer's directions.

Step 2: Cover the Grass with Fabric

One benefit of a raised bed is that you don't need to dig out all the grass. But you do need to keep grass at bay so it doesn't invade your new garden. So cover the ground with a biodegradable landscape fabric, sometimes called biodegradable weed fabric or organic weed control. Make sure to cover the entire ground, and overlap the seams by least 4 inches. A garden expert at my local nursery tells me that cardboard or four or more layers of newspaper can work, too.

When I built mine, I used the fabric method described here but still ended up with errant blades of grass poking up in the corners and in spots along the perimeter. To avoid that, dig a 6-inch-wide strip along the edges of the bed.

Next, fill in the bed with topsoil until you're about 6 inches from the top. (Because you're using store-bought topsoil, you'll have good soil in the garden even if you live in an area where the ground is rocky or sandy.) Under the weight of the soil, the landscape fabric (or cardboard or paper) will suffocate and kill the grass beneath, then decompose, so it won't form a permanent barrier between the garden and the ground.

Step 3: Mix in Compost and Fertilizer

Mix two 40-pound bags of topsoil with one 40-pound bag of compost manure in a wheelbarrow. I like to add a shovelful of slow-release fertilizer to the mix. It can be a little more or less than that—backyard gardening isn't an exact science.

Shovel in the mixture of soil, compost and fertilizer to top off the bed. The compost improves the soil structure by encouraging root growth, helping the soil hold water and adding nutrients for plants. The fertilizer gradually releases its nutrients over time to feed your plants as they grow.

Step 4: Start Planting

Now that you have a bed of rich soil, plant your vegetables or flowers. It's worth talking to experts at a local nursery for recommendations on what grows well in your area. I learned this the hard way after wasting a fair amount of money on plants that just don't thrive where I live in Minnesota; just because a store in your area sells certain plants doesn't mean they're suited for your region.

For a flower garden, cover the soil with mulch after planting to hold in moisture and keep out weeds. For vegetables, you'll need to pull or hoe the weeds every other week.

Finally, water regularly. It's best to do it early in the morning or in the evening rather than the middle of the day, when water evaporates more quickly.